Petrol Station Etiquette

[Harrythedog]

I only ever buy fuel from garages where a little man in a white coat comes out of his kiosk and asks how much petrol I want. He then watches the drums roll round on the pump and always gets the amount exactly right.

I suppose you then give him a couple of ten shilling notes

 

[markjay]

I generally pick a pump and queue up behind it. This usually then turns out to be the person who then does their weekly shop in the store, whilst leaving their car parked on the pump, then going to pay.

Sometimes the forecourt design determines if queuing is sensible or not.

Same here. Tempting as it may be to block the entrance to the petrol station and monopolise the first free pump choice, it somehow just doesn't feel right... so I take a gamble and park-up behind whoever I hope will be the first to pay and leave.

 

[moonloops]

Drive in, drive around static cars and go to the queue you want job done.

p.s. there are never any queues at petrol stations at 6.30am on Tuesdays

 

[219]

I will queue politely if there is no obstruction behind ; however I will not queue onto a road where I might get rear ended - in that event I will either drive around and choose a pump , or I will go elsewhere .

I sometimes find people are reluctant to pass other cars to get to a front pump , where the front car has finished and gone , but the one behind is still filling up - more than once I have driven past queing cars ( after waiting long enough to see if they will move ) just because they won't pass another car to get to the front pump .

I will go to a pump on the correct side , given the choice , but am happy to go to the other side and extend the hose if needed , holding the hose clear of my car if needed . Most garages have signage directing people to use either side as available ; if some operator tried not authorising my pump - I would blast the horn to get their attention , then complain loudly and write in to head office .

 

[drdolittle]

I sometimes find people are reluctant to pass other cars to get to a front pump , where the front car has finished and gone , but the one behind is still filling up - more than once I have driven past queing cars ( after waiting long enough to see if they will move ) just because they won't pass another car to get to the front pump .

Another brilliant example of some "drivers" inability to make a decision.

I would hazard a guess that most of these petrol station muppets are the same people you will find hogging either the middle or outside lanes on empty motorways!!!

 

[christopherwk]

if some operator tried not authorising my pump

I would just put the pump back and drive off elsewhere, like I did at the BP in Borehamwood, and went to the Shell up the road instead where I bought £100 of diesel and a few pounds worth of food and drink.

I looked at the attendant (at BP) while I had the pump in the nozzle and he gave me a sign as if to say "wait a minute", did that, couldn't wait any longer, got in car and drove off.

Their loss.

 

[millo777]

The general consensus of opinion seems to be that waiting 5 mins to fill your car with fuel is extremely annoying and that precious time is gone forever and it's everyone elses fault you'll never get it back.....and yet bitching about it to stangers on the interweb for 15 mins is fine. Strange world we live in. Patience is a long forgotten virtue.

 

[jaymanek]

Its interesting to watch human behaviour... We used to own a petrol station which we now lease out.

Its amazing how many people stop at the first pump they come to rather than move forward to allow any customers behind to be able to get fuel.
We put massive signs up, even had members of staff waving them forward at times...

Then the person behind.. oh wow.. they get SO frustrated because the person in front is in the shop deciding between coke and pepsi...
Why not just go around them and reverse into the pump in front thats not being used... no; that would involve common sense and we British love to stand in orderly queues.

The best time was during the fuel shortage a few years ago... we were the last station in town with fuel and to keep it fair for the hundreds of cars queuing up the road we had to cap it at £20 each maximum... Oh the abuse we got..

 

[Richak]

I try and pick a pump where the car is there but no sign of the driver summising he's paying for his fuel or a woman as they generally put a small amount in

But if it is a woman, when she comes back to the car she then usually has to look at herself in the mirror, do her hair and make up, empty her handbag, re-fill her handbag before putting on her seatbelt and heading of. Grrrrrr

Interestingly, I travel around the North East of Brazil a lot and none of the petrol stations there are self-service that I have found. There is usually a team of guys who all do different jobs - one does your oil, another does your windscreen, another fills the tank. I guess it was like that here in the 1950s

 

[nurple]

Just go when its not busy....problem solved!

 

[Harrythedog]

At one time there was a clip on the nozzle whereby you could lock the nozzle open when you were filling your tank and it would shut off when the tank was full, what happened to this.

 

[jaymanek]

ELF & SAFETY...

They got rid of those as there were incidents of people tripping over the pipes and resulting in forecourts wet with flammable liquid.

There is a cheat, just stuff your petrol cap under the nozzle... it will stop automatically when it reaches the top..

 

[Whitey]

I go between 3-4 in the morning saves any hassle !

 

[JOB-BLACK-RAT]

So having filled up my tank I see the waiting punter behind. Being a gent I moved from my pump to allow the wiating folk to fill up and so parked in the bay in front of the window of the shop.

I get a propper dressing down from snot nose'd kid behind counter because he 'felt' I was making off without payment and had pressed the 'The button' to circulate my index to Essex plod!?

Not even sure if that is correct, however i does put one off moving away from the pump any more!

 

[Harrythedog]

I go between 3-4 in the morning saves any hassle !

That's a problem with supermarkets hogging the market and killing off independents. The supermarket filling stations don't open up till 6 or 7 around me

 

[markjay]

So having filled up my tank I see the waiting punter behind. Being a gent I moved from my pump to allow the wiating folk to fill up and so parked in the bay in front of the window of the shop.

I get a propper dressing down from snot nose'd kid behind counter because he 'felt' I was making off without payment and had pressed the 'The button' to circulate my index to Essex plod!?

Not even sure if that is correct, however i does put one off moving away from the pump any more!

So you're still in hiding from the boys in blue?

 

[christopherwk]

So having filled up my tank I see the waiting punter behind. Being a gent I moved from my pump to allow the wiating folk to fill up and so parked in the bay in front of the window of the shop.

I get a propper dressing down from snot nose'd kid behind counter because he 'felt' I was making off without payment and had pressed the 'The button' to circulate my index to Essex plod!?

Not even sure if that is correct, however i does put one off moving away from the pump any more!

That's what I'm afraid of, however, if I'm on the motorbike, I can just simply wheel it forward - as it will be obvious I'm not going to make off without paying.

 

[markjay]

Not sure what's the merit of that TBH - the next bloke can't really start filling-up until you paid anyway? So it'll just serve to frustrate him as he won't get why the juice isn't flowing...

 

[jaymanek]

Not sure what's the merit of that TBH - the next bloke can't really start filling-up until you paid anyway? So it'll just serve to frustrate him as he won't get why the juice isn't flowing...

depends on the pump software, they can at ours. .

From a business perspective it makes sense for the customer to pull forward and allow new customers in.. however you can understand their sensitivity as drive offs are a big problem...
The police are great though, they really do follow these things up.. unfortunately most doing it use fake plates.

 

[Charles Morgan]

So having filled up my tank I see the waiting punter behind. Being a gent I moved from my pump to allow the wiating folk to fill up and so parked in the bay in front of the window of the shop.

I get a propper dressing down from snot nose'd kid behind counter because he 'felt' I was making off without payment and had pressed the 'The button' to circulate my index to Essex plod!?

Not even sure if that is correct, however i does put one off moving away from the pump any more!

Should have nicked him for wasting police time!